Eddies&Backpacks&Parade&College&

Our&Supporting&Partners&

Statistics&of&foster&Children&throughout&Australia&&&

Student&involvement&

!  Feb&2013&–&3&Members&

!  June&2013&–&8&Members&

!  September&2013&F&&10&Members&

Our&Guide&and&mentor&&

!  Mr&Cruse&was&our&guide&he&has&supported&us&in&everything&we&dreamt&of&doing.&

!  He&was&the&one&who&gave&us&this&great&innovation&and&idea&of&doing&this&project.&

Having&goals&is&important&

Why&Backpacks&

•  Kids%can%move%into%foster%homes%with%nothing%at%all.%

•  We%desired%to%make%it%easier%for%them.%•  It%can%make%a%big%difference%to%a%kid%in%a%very%difficult%=me.%

What&we&did&to&make&a&difference&

!  &Completed&our&first&Community&Action&placement&

!  Approached&&Mr.&Cruse&about&getting&involved&in&Community&Action&

!  Formed&a&group&–&3&members&

February&

What&we&did&to&make&a&difference&

March&!  A&grant&became&available&through&Banyule&Council&for&students&to&

make&a&difference&in&our&community&

!  Contacted&Baptcare&about&our&idea&–&No&great&interest&

!  Contacted&Foster&Care&Association&–&they&thought&it&was&a&good&idea&and&they&contacted&Mackillop&Family&Services&

! While&they&both&liked&the&idea&we&had&to&prove&ourselves&

What&we&did&to&make&a&difference&

April& !  Our&grant&of&$5,000&was&approved&

!  Project&has&credibility&–&we&don’t&need&to&spend&all&our&time&fundraising&

!  Talked&about&contacting&companies&for&donations&–&didn’t&happen&

!  Researched&backpacks&and&goodies&online&&

!  Contacted&our&school&marketing&department&who&contacted&local&papers&

!  FCAV&and&Mackillop&came&to&Parade&to&talk&through&the&project&and&discuss&the&needs&of&kids&in&care&

!  Basic&rules&of&group&decided&–&meetings&etc&

What&we&did&to&make&a&difference&

May&

!  Visited&Mackillop&Family&Services&former&orphanage&in&South&Melbourne&

!  Presented&our&first&backpack&

!  Learned&about&the&history&of&Mackillop&and&got&a&tour&

!  Heard&stories&of&foster&kids&

! We&started&understand&the&value&of&our&project&(Cameras&everywhere&from&local&papers)&

What&we&did&to&make&a&difference&

June&

!  Ordered&200&backpacks&(We&now&have&a&standard&backpack)&

!  Despite&plans&for&our&logo&on&bags&we&changed&our&mind&as&we&didn’t&want&to&identify&the&kids&as&foster&kids&

!  Donation&of&200&water&bottles&from&a&parent&

!  Donation&of&300&books&from&library&

!  Purchased&goods&(Towels,&pencils,&torches,&MP4&players&etc)&

What&we&did&to&make&a&difference&

July&

"  Our&first&25&backpacks&&

"  Formal&presentation&in&front&of&year&10&students&(More&members&became&involved)&

"  FCAV&gave&us&a&10kg&block&of&chocolate&–&We&raffled&this&and&we&got&more&publicity&

What&we&did&to&make&a&difference&

August&

"  Selling&raffle&tickets&throughout&the&school&starts&conversations&about&our&project&

&

&

What&we&did&to&make&a&difference&

September&&

"  Polly&Woodside&–&Presented&our&next&27&backpacks&

"  Helped&run&the&Foster&Care&day&

"  Raffled&our&block&of&chocolate&–&Raised&$400&

"  Sold&drinks&and&biscuits&each&morning&to&celebrate&Foster&Care&Week&

&

Receiving&the&chocolate&&

Victorian&Parliament&

What&we&Include&in&our&BackPacks&

" Depending%on%aged%groups%the%backpacks%are%different%but%they%can%include%

•  Towel%•  Toothbrush%•  Torch%•  Hairbrush%•  MP4%Player%•  Photo%Frame%•  Drink%BoGles%•  Pens%•  Novels%•  Blankets%•  Pencils%

%

Why&I&got&involved?&

%